Send Dizzy a Tip!

Buy Me a Coffee

Season 4, Episode 1

Emily

Age: 26
Location: Ohio
Addiction: Anorexia, exercise
What’s Memorable: How sick and frail her body is. How weird it is to see what she would look like if she wasn’t Anorexic (twin sister). The crazy food rituals.

Official synopsis: Emily, 26, grew up struggling to meet her parents’ high expectations. Despite winning many academic and athletic honors, Emily suffered from depression and low self-esteem, and her shameful feelings intensified when she became a date-rape victim in college. She dieted in hopes of regaining control of her emotions and life, but now she weighs less than 90 pounds. Her family’s last hope is an intervention that will stop her from starving herself to death.
Original Air Date: December 2007

Interventionist:  Candy

Comments
All comments.
Comments

  1. Marcia

    What ever happened to her? Did she finally except help and deal with everything that has made for feel so alone?

    1. MissLeopard83

      I’ve been wondering about her myself. I tried looking for an update many times. Apparently, Intervention filmed one, but it is no longer posted. I hope she was able to make it through recovery and is now happy and healthy. She was so incredibly smart and intuitive – she even understood her rituals – since she had a Master’s degree in Counseling. It was so painful to watch her self-destruct because of the rape and low self-esteem.

  2. Steph

    Do we have an update on Emily? Her story is so heart-breaking and I so want to hear that she is (hopefully) doing well!

  3. Lauren

    Has anyone heard of any update on Emily?

  4. blarinna

    this one is rarely on TV — I may have only seen it the day it was on TV originally. I’ve never seen an update. I work in a rehab and the eating disorder cases are the toughest.

  5. Janelle

    I’d love to see an update on Emily. She seems like a good-hearted person who lacks the narcissism, manipulativeness and spitefulness that most anorexics and bulimics have. Compare her to Kaila, Amy from Toronto, Andrew, Katie and Kelly from Season 1. Her anorexia began in high school, but it escalated dramatically and got completely out of hand after she was gang raped in college, and she would have had to come to terms with that trauma in order to begin recovery from the anorexia.

    Kaila was also the last person with an eating disorder profiled on the show, and that was all the way back in season 13 in 2013. Most seasons prior to that had at least one or two eating disorders, but there haven’t been any in 5 years. I wonder why the producers decided to stop profiling eating disorders on the show?

    1. Laura

      Dizzy, this is at least the third post I’ve read by this individual that includes derogatory and untrue statements about people with eating disorders (“the narcissism, manipulativeness and spitefulness that most anorexics and bulimics have”…really??) I know other folks have been upset by it too, and especially on behalf of those of us recovery from an eating disorder, I’d like to know if it’s a violation of comment rules…and if not, can we develop a policy about it? Thanks.

      1. Kitty Katt

        It’s not just eating disorders that she’s an expert on……it seems she is an expert on every addiction/disorder that someone has on here.

      2. Dizzy

        I know, it’s an issue. I’ve given a warning about something else before and she hasn’t done that since so I didn’t feel like I had a legit reason to ban her, despite my discomfort with much of what she says. What she often does in the comments (antagonizing, diagnosing, generally being a rude know-it-all) is admittedly kind of a grey area in the comment policy. But at this point enough people have complained about her comments that I can’t in good conscience let her keep posting. So consider Janelle banned as of today.

      3. Andy

        Thank you very much Dizzy. I really do appreciate you taking into consideration about other people’s feelings and complaints. Her comments were just awful.

      4. Tobie

        Thank you. I don’t need to read about how I’m a terrible, unredeemable person because I have an eating disorder. I already feel bad enough.

      5. Laura

        Thank you, Dizzy. We appreciate you, I feel safer as a result of this decision.

    2. RayMo

      I have known at least 3 people with serious eating disorders and they are all incredibly nice, giving, and selfless.

  6. Tobie

    I think they should force rapists in prison to watch this show. This is what happens when people are violated. This is what their lives become. Emily’s story has always stayed with me, and I often think of her. I truly hope she was able to find happiness from this hell.

    1. Kitty Katt

      Rapists in prison don’t give a $hit about anyone but them selves The possibility of going to prison (some for a very long time) won’t stop I doubt watching what happens to their victims later in life will.

    2. Jacey

      You’re assuming rapists think as you do and have empathy, but they are usually the opposite.

      1. Kate

        Exactly. People who care about whether or not others are harmed, don’t harm people in the most intimate way.

  7. Andy

    I just saw this episode today. I really hope she got better. I felt so bad for her. If anyone has any updates on her I would love to know how she’s doing now and I hope she has found inner peace.

  8. Alice Schmid

    It just gallsme that these pigs who raped her got away with it. While she continues to suffer.

    I hope she is well.

  9. Kara

    I really hope you’re well, Emily. I hope you and your family have found peace with each other.

  10. Spessie

    I just found this. It says she passed away here on this link. RIP Emily, Bless her heart. She was so sweet. https://justbelieverecovery.com/intervention-deaths/

    1. Dizzy

      This page has Emily under the “7 Of The Most Engaging Intervention Episodes” section, so it’s not saying that she died.

      Everyone should be aware of that Just Believe website. It’s a recovery center that has these Intervention lists that they put up there purely to get clicks from Google. They write their own synopses of the episodes but they get the updates and most of the photos from Intervention Directory. These Intervention lists are only accessible via Google, you can’t get to them in the menu, and they have multiple “deaths” pages with different titles. What they’re doing is working, they usually have the top spot above Intervention Directory in the Google searches.

      1. Spessie

        Oh wow, I didn’t know that. I wont be trusting that site again. Thanks for letting me know. Sorry that my information was wrong.

  11. Anonymous

    Be well Emily. Thinking of you and wishing you the best. I hope you realize people out here are pulling for you.

  12. Xlio

    I hope she’s ok. I just rewatched in first time in years (been watching for 14 years – half my life) and I swear seeing her without clothes disturbed me more than watching people shoot up. This is not meant in a Ew she’s so skinny derogatory way but rather an Oh my gosh she is sooo sick way. Almost like you could see her organs. I overcame anorexia in my younger years and I’m so glad I was able to listen to my family telling me I was going to die. When you’re young, you never think anything is that serious. IT IS. I hope she’s happy and healthy. We love you, Emily!

  13. Pang

    I wish we had an update on Emily- its been years. I’m also wondering why the show stopped doing interventions on people with eating disorders?

  14. LJ

    After tons of digging around I found her FB! https://www.facebook.com/emily.stewart.1804 Last public update was 2014 but she looked great in it! Super happy to see 😀

    1. Susan

      Omg thank you I literally just saw her episode. I was afraid she passed away after trying to google her! She does look happy and healthy!

    1. Dizzy

      Definitely not the same Emily. Among other things, the dates don’t add up. Our Emily couldn’t have been a freshman in college in 1989, she was only 26 in the episode.

      1. Kara

        Has dizzy said this is not the same Emily the Emily in the link was born in 1989 and her mothers name is Marsha and she’s from Iowa. The Emily from intervention is much younger she lives in Ohio and her mothers name is pam and she has a twin sister named Tiffany and another sister. The Emily in the link has only a brother and no sisters

    2. Chris

      This is not the same Emily.
      I went to high school with Emily (and her sisters). She and her twin Tiffany were a year below me. As I type, I believe one of her older sisters now lives just a few houses up from my parents!
      She came from a big family in our hometown, and any news about problems would have made the rounds quickly. Her appearance on the show was a real shock to many who didn’t know that she was in trouble, so I’m certain I would have heard if things had gotten worse overall. That’s one of the unfortunate things about small towns- but in this case, no news is good news. I believe she’s doing okay. There hasn’t been anything that would indicate otherwise.
      I remember her as a very kindhearted, quiet, and studious girl. I hope she’s doing okay!
      I’ll ask my sister for any news- she’ll know.

  15. Kathryn White

    Via a presentation at the University of Iowa in 2010, Marcia Fischer told her daughter Emily died in 2009

    1. Dizzy

      Not the same Emily

  16. Renee

    Very sad, but seems Emily has passed away in 2010. Here’s the Iowa State link update on her life: https://www.news.iastate.edu/news/2010/feb/EDOweek

    1. Dizzy

      I know the resemblance is really strong and there are definitely similarities in their stories, but I don’t believe this is the same Emily. Our Emily was 26 in 2009/2010, this article says that Emily Fischer started college in 1989 and battled anorexia for 20 years. Doesn’t add up.

    2. Kara

      As dizzy said this is not the same Emily that Emily was born in 1989 her mothers name was Marsha and she had a brother and no sisters this Emily on intervention has a mother name pam And a twin sister I think name Tiffany and they are from Ohio the one that died is from Iowa and she is much older then this Emily.

    3. Kara

      Her mothers name is pam not Marsha has in the link and she lives in Ohio not Iowa end of this he said she’s much younger this song was born in 1989 and she died in 2010 and The Emily from intervention has posted on her Facebook past 2010 and for more information read my comments after dizzy’s post.

  17. Chance and Destiny

    OMG. Poor Emily. That poor girl had so much self hatred. Her rituals were so painful to watch. She really didn’t think that she deserved anything better. I have never seen anyone on this show as physically sick looking as her.
    I had a surgery go very wrong and I got down to 93 pounds and that was with several pounds of skin. Comparatively, Emily’s body looked 10 pounds smaller (She’s much taller) and I was wearing children’s sizes. The way her clothes hung on her was awful. She had nothing but bone to hold them. The thing people don’t know or associate with malnutrition is the pain involved. When your body eats itself and muscles break down its pure lactic acid everywhere. I couldn’t stand up for long let alone workout like she did. It probably hurt her so much. I finally had to get a feeding tube that didn’t help and then a central line to give me vitamins and instantly I felt so much better. This might sound ignorant, and I know that it is so hard to commit someone but why couldn’t a hospital keep her for at least 72 hours because extreme anorexia is ultimate self harm. They can keep you if you are in danger of hurting yourself. It’s slow suicide. Obviously it is a much more complex issue but I can’t imagine anyone looking at Emily and not being horrified. I understand body dysmorphia and that Emily obviously didn’t see how sick she was. (I naturally would go to the plus section when I was an extra small) but there was no way that she hadn’t done organ or brain damage. Hopefully it wasn’t permanent and she recovered and lives a happy fulfilled life now.
    Sorry for the rant. She just broke my heart

    1. Chance and Destiny

      Btw, I fought the doctor and my family for a month over getting the feeding tube because Nicole from season 5 scared me so much and I was disgusted by it. I was so happy that it failed and that I got the central line instead. It worked and I was strong enough to have corrective surgery and I recovered but I still have permanent pains in my legs etc from the malnutrition. I hope all of you who struggle get help so you don’t have to live with physical or emotional pain anymore

  18. Adam

    She’s alive and well! She is a counselor at an elementary school in Ohio. You can see her in the middle with long hair.
    https://www.northridgeschools.org/GuidanceCounseling.aspx

    1. Stefan

      That’s great to hear! We’ve long wanted an update on Emily and thankfully it appears to be positive.